Grim-N-Gritty (3.5e Sourcebook)/Called Shots

Contents

Called Shots are attacks that a character tries to target at a specific location on your opponent’s body, in an
attempt to inflict damage that is more severe, pierce a weak point in the target’s armor, or disable a limb.

Rather than having a body-part centered Called Shot system, the GnG uses an effect-based system. In other words,
you do not specify the part of the body you wish to hit. Instead, you select a set of effects you desire to inflict upon
your enemy.

You declare your intent to perform a Called Shot before you roll the dice for your attack.

You select the effects of your Called Shot. (Each effect imposes a negative modifier to your attack roll.)

You provoke an attack of opportunity from your target when you initiate the Called Shot.

You make your attack, with the appropriate negative penalties.

If your attack hits and you chose a Penetration Effect, your target makes a Reflex save to avoid having its armor penetrated.

If your attack hits, you chose a Condition Effect, and you inflicted at least 1 HP damage to your target (after Protection, Damage Reduction, Energy Resistance, and similar attributes are applied), your target makes a Fortitude save against the condition.

If your target fails the save, the effect takes place.

You may not perform Called Shots as attacks of
opportunity.

You may not perform Called Shots against targets
with any degree of concealment.

Condition Effects impose a particular penalty,
condition, or damage modifier to the target.

If your attack hits and inflicts at least 1 HP damage to
your target, your target makes a Fortitude save against
10 + the damage inflicted by your attack. If the save
fails, your target suffers all of the conditions imposed
by your Called Shot.

Condition effects include the following:

Blindness

Attack Penalty: -6.

Result: Your target is blinded for one round.

Special: Creatures with no nervous system are immune to this effect.

Daze

Attack Penalty: -4.

Result: Your target is dazed for one round.

Special: Creatures with no nervous system are immune to this effect.

Deafness

Attack Penalty: -4.

Result: Your target is deafened for 1d4+1 rounds.

Special: Creatures with no nervous system are immune to this effect.

Disabled Arm

Attack Penalty: -8.

Result: Your target suffers a –2 penalty to attack rolls, Strength checks, and all skill checks based on arm use, such as Climb, Craft, Disable Device, Escape Artist, Forgery, Alchemy, Heal, Open Lock, Pick Pocket, Swim, and Use Rope checks. If all arms are disabled, the victim cannot manipulate items. A disabled arm automatically drops any items it holds.

Note: The penalties for multiple disabled arms do not stack, though they do stack with other body parts.

Disabled Ear

You disable your target’s ear, not only disrupting his hearing, but also disturbing his equilibrium.

Attack Penalty: -4

Result: Your target suffers a –2 penalty to initiative rolls, Defense rolls, Reflex saves, and all skill checks based on the sense of hearing or equilibrium, such as Balance, Bluff, Climb, Diplomacy, Intimidate, Listen, Perform, and Tumble. If all ears are disabled, the victim is deafened.

Note: The penalties for multiple disabled ears do not stack, though they do stack with other body parts.

Special: Creatures with no nervous system, brain, or some centralized organ for cognition are immune to this effect.

Note: The penalties for multiple disabled heads do not stack, though they do stack with other body parts.

Disabled Leg

Attack Penalty: -6.

Result: Your target suffers a –2 penalty to Defense rolls, Reflex saves, Dexterity checks, and all skill checks based on leg use, such as Climb, Swim, Jump, Ride, Tumble, Balance, and Move Silently checks. The victim cannot run or charge. If all legs are disabled, the victim can only move by crawling and loses any Dexterity bonus to Defense.

Note: The penalties for multiple disabled legs do not stack, though they do stack with other body parts.

Severe Bleeding

You open a major artery in your opponent’s body and cause severe bleeding.

Attack Penalty: -8.

Result: One round after the attack, the victim makes a DC 12 Fortitude save. If he fails the save, he becomes fatigued from blood loss. If he succeeds, next round (and each round thereafter), he must make another Fortitude save with a cumulative +1 increase in the DC.

Once the victim becomes fatigued, the DC of the Fortitude save resets to 15. The consequence of failing the save is now exhaustion.

Once the victim becomes exhausted, the Fortitude save DC resets again. Now, the victim makes the save to avoid death from blood loss.

Binding the wounds or performing some other treatment to stop the bleeding causes the need for saves to end. The victim must recover from fatigue and exhaustion in the normal manner.

Special: Creatures with no circulatory system are immune to this effect.

Note: In real life, you would die in a matter of seconds from severe bleeding, without regard for your physical toughness.

Silent Kill

You kill your opponent without your victim uttering a sound.

Attack Penalty: -4.

Result: If your attack inflicts enough damage to disable, kill, or render your target unconscious, your target cannot make any noise to draw attention to its incapacitation. It is not possible for the victim to scream or groan. Nothing more than a slight, faint gasp escapes its lips.

Special: Creatures with no nervous system or sensitivity to pain are immune to this effect.

Stab and Grab

You stab your weapon through your opponent’s body (usually through an arm or leg). Then, with your free hand, you grab the weapon as it pokes out on the opposite side and twist. This initiates a grapple.

Special Requirements: To perform this Called Shot, you must meet the following requirements:

You must have the Improved Grapple feat.

You must wield a one-handed slashing or piercing melee weapon.

You must have one hand free.

If you use a slashing weapon, it must have a single edge. (Otherwise, you slice yourself.)

Attack Penalty: -4.

Result: The weapon punctures your target, and you grab it. You immediately perform a grapple check, with a +4 bonus on your roll, to initiate a grapple and inflict damage on your target. If you win the check, you are now grappling.

As long as the weapon remains lodged in your opponent’s body, you gain a +4 bonus on all grapple checks against that enemy.

Removing the Weapon: An opposed grapple check is necessary to remove the weapon from your opponent’s body. Either you or your opponent may initiate the check. When the weapon is removed, your victim suffers damage from the weapon. Do not count Strength modifiers, specialization bonuses, Relative Degree, skill-based damage modifiers, and the like when figuring the damage. Since the weapon already pierces your enemy’s flesh, the damage ignores Protection.

If the weapon is barbed, double the damage dice it inflicts when removed.

Stun

Attack Penalty: -6.

Result: Your target is stunned for one round.

Special: Creatures with no nervous system or sensitivity to pain are immune to this effect.

Vital Strike

You penetrate a vital organ to inflict severe damage.

Attack Penalty: -8.

Result: Double all damage inflicted upon the target after applying Protection, Damage Reduction, Energy Resistance, and similar defenses.

Special: Creatures with no discernible anatomy, oozes, undead, and the like are immune to this effect.

If a nonlethal attack disables a body part, the part
recovers in 2d4 minutes.

If a lethal attack disables a body part, the part takes a
considerable time to heal.

Natural Healing: After a normal day’s rest, roll d%.
If the result is equal to or less than your Constitution
score, then your disabled body part recovers. (Make a
separate roll for each disabled part.) Any significant
interruption during your rest prevents you from healing
that night. Any HP loss during a cycle prevents
recovery.

If you undergo complete bed rest for an entire day,
the d% chance that your body part will recover equals
twice your Constitution score.

If a healer successfully tends your injuries, your
chance of recovery equals twice your Constitution if
you have normal rest and three times your Constitution
score with complete bed rest.

If you cannot recover lost HP because you are dying
and unstable, then you cannot recover disabled body
parts.

Surgery: A DC 15 check with Heal skill can
restore a disabled body part as a full-round action. (-5 penalty to do so as a standard action, -10 penalty to do so as a move action, -15 penalty to do so as a swift action) A failed surgery check deals 1d4 damage to the creature being treated.

Regeneration: Creatures with the regeneration
special ability recover disabled body parts as soon as
they recover all lost HP.

Extraordinary Healing: You may direct items,
special abilities, and powers that heal a particular
amount of HP to restore a disabled body part. Roll the
dice to determine the amount of HP healed. Then, roll
1d20. If the d20 result is equal to or lower than the HP
amount, the disabled part is restored.

Extraordinary healing methods used to restore
disabled body part do not restore lost HP.

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